at my wits end over dogs...

[janetg]

just venting..so thanks in advance.

as many of you know, one of my dogs went blind this year - just a couple of months ago. diagnosis? brain tumor... so that's 1

our other dog - teah - in july, scratched herself silly on a particularly bad allergy day (yay for dogs with allergies...NOT) - and got herself a staph infection. ff 5 months later, and 2K in meds...it's a permanent thing with her, and she will for the rest of her life, be on some sort of steroid to suppress her immune system. we are on the 3rd go-round of 'let's see if this medication works' and doesn't kill her liver while trying..

so.. in march of this year..my mother passed away, and you guessed it, i inherited her dog. which shortly after we got her, was diagnosed with pancreatitis from all the crap my mother used to feed her. everything was going along well, till about 2 months ago with this one. then she discovered 'acorns'. now, short of cutting down our tree, which we aren't going to do..we've picked up over 75lbs of the little acorns and they just keep coming. so what do acorns do to the little dog? well, first, there is the vomiting. then there is the pooping..and not just ordinary pooping...bloody diarreah pooping.. and she doesn't make it to the door. (my dogs are trained to ring a bell when they need to go out).

so..the treatment for this is...antibiotics, anti fungals..and no food or drink for 3 days. cost if the vet does this? $500 for a 3 day stay - since they have to have IV fluids during this time. cost if I do it? $125 - BUT i have to do the fluids myself, via a very big needle, inserted under her skin...10 minutes twice a day.

so...my rant is...she has barely been over this for 2-3 weeks..and this morning (happy birthday btw) i hear retching...i go find her, and of course, there is a trail of bloody poop leading to the dog.

i don't know what to do about this..having a blind dog is hard enough, she can't find her own food, wanders about like she has alzheimers, and has to be watched pretty much 24/7 - oh - and there's the seizure thing. always fun.

anyone want a yorkie? she's cute..

[Lexie]

Janet, sorry to hear about all the pet problems! Our Yorkie had the same problem, cause we fed her stuff she should not have. BUT my mother in law............hmmmm, well she gave her what ever she wanted! A LOT!! It caused the same problems of bloody diarrhea and vomiting as you described!! NO Not fun at all!! Two trips to the vet and now she is on strict diet of Science Diet ID and she has not had any more problems. We do have to keep the pecans picked up though. She loves them, but they DO NOT love her!!

[janetg]

thanks lexie - i am just at my wits end here...i am a prisoner of my dogs - since july. i rarely get a good 4-5 hours of sleep per night as the steroids keep the one dog up, and when one is up, they are all up - especially the blind one, because she has completely lost the sense of day/night. the yorkie has been on a strict diet since coming to live here, especially for pancreatic dogs (the blind one is pancreatic as well, but has had no issues with it for almost 2 years now).

i just don't know what else to do... we have fenced the pool, created special areas for them..bagged and bagged acorns, but like today, it's raining, i'm not going to bag acorns, i'm not - we have spent over 8K on these dogs this past year... i am just so depressed about this today..and feeling extremely guilty about wanting to do anythign with the yorkie, like give her away...put her down..whatever, it's like my mother is watching and scolding me already for even thinking it - and i know that's ridiculous, but still..

[L Stegall]

I don't know what to say but that I'm so sorry you are having to deal with all of this. Just one of these would be a lot to deal with, but x3 is overwhelming.

[Wil_Bloodworth]

Janet,

May 2010 be a much better year for you!

- Wil

[Coogie]

I had a dog for a day and a half thanks to my idiot neighbors neglecting a dog they were watching for their friend (long story of how I found the poor dog scratching at my door in cold weather...twice). It was about 24 hours but I felt like a prisoner too wondering what i was going to do, but fortunately the real owner came...so I can't even imagine having a sick helpless animal with me all the time.

[Cajungaltx]

I would consider finding another home for one of them, at least.

Hopefully a home that doesn't have acorns... ;-)

I think looking at it from a different perspective - i.e. your mom wouldn't want you becoming exhausted/ill from struggling to take care of 3 dogs - might help.

[L Stegall]

Oh, and I forgot earlier - happy birthday. Really. I'm with Donna on this - you shouldn't feel guilty about making some changes that are best for you!

[kimberley]

maybe call the yorkie rescue and see if they have some advice for you...its hard but maybe finding her another home would help :(

[toverman]

I understand your struggle. It's hard enough to care for an aging and ailing dog that you've fallen in love with, so inheriting one on top of the two you've got is understandably difficult. Agree that finding another home for at least one of them might be in your best interests. We are the "master" of the dogs, it should never be the other way around. Don't feel guilty for wanting to reclaim some of your life.

[digitaldude400d]

Just a thought here, and an odd one at that. Would it be possible to make a fenced in area that you could cover with some sort of netting to keep the acorns from falling into it? This way you wouldn't have to pick up all the acorns in your yard and your dogs would be safe from getting a hold of them.

And Happy Birthday Janet!

[JohnT]

Originally Posted by toverman

we are the "master" of the dogs, it should never be the other way around. Don't feel guilty for wanting to reclaim some of your life.

+1

[heathercaptures]

Originally Posted by digitaldude400d

Just a thought here, and an odd one at that. Would it be possible to make a fenced in area that you could cover with some sort of netting to keep the acorns from falling into it? This way you wouldn't have to pick up all the acorns in your yard and your dogs would be safe from getting a hold of them.
And Happy Birthday Janet!

That was my thought as well.
As for your dog that went blind, do as little as possible to aid her. You would be surprised how many dogs that go blind end up finding there way around the house. You said she/he was diagnosed a few months ago? It takes some time for them to get used to it, but they adjust. I worked as a Vet. Tech for several years and have heard many stories of animal owner who owned a cat/ dog that went blind and could find the cat box, front door no problems.
I also agree that your mother wouldn't want to you be so stressed out, and sleep deprived. She would want her dog to have someone to love them that could take quality care of her friend, and if that person is not you a rescue will find one. Good Luck and Happy B-day!